


Frogs, Snails, and Puppy-Dog Tails

by w0rdinista (Niamh_St_George)



Series: Elinora Cousland [9]
Category: Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-01-28
Updated: 2010-01-28
Packaged: 2017-10-06 18:54:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/56755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Niamh_St_George/pseuds/w0rdinista
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inspired by two bits of Alistair-banter that occur in-game during the trip to Redcliffe.  One is when he reveals he accidently locked himself in a cage.  The other is when he reminds Bann Teagan that he was much younger and "covered in mud" last time Teagan saw him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Frogs, Snails, and Puppy-Dog Tails

Title: Snails and Puppy-Dog Tails  
Rating: G  
Characters: Alistair, Elinora Cousland, Fergus Cousland, Cailan  
Pairing: Uh. Calling it a "pairing" here might be stretching it, but we'll go Alistair/Elinora anyway. (Try to contain your shock and surprise.)  
Notes: Inspired by two bits of Alistair-banter that occur in-game during the trip to Redcliffe. One is when he reveals he accidently locked himself in a cage. The other is when he reminds Bann Teagan that he was much younger and "covered in mud" last time Teagan saw him.

 

To suggest that Fergus Cousland was displeased was putting it mildly. And the object of his displeasure was watching him from behind the safety of their father's legs. "But _Father_..." he began again, hoping to sway him, even slightly.

But their father only sighed and shook his head. "The matter is quite settled, Fergus."

"But--!"

"Fergus," Bryce Cousland said, his tone brooking no argument, "another word and _you_ will be the one left behind while I take your sister to Redcliffe."

Elinora stuck her tongue out at her brother. He scowled in response, but did not utter another syllable – they were both perfectly aware that Father would do just as he promised, and there would doubtless be extra chores involved if Fergus were to be left behind. She didn't understand why Fergus was being such a baby about it – he'd been to Redcliffe a number of times already, after all. Elinora had simply had the good luck of finally being able to persuade their father that she was quite old enough to be included. She was six, after all. Nearly seven. And hadn't Brother Aldous said just the other day that she was quite mature for her age?

No, that had been Mother Mallol. Brother Aldous had scolded her for drawing a dragon in the margin of her primer. Again.

Father turned suddenly and Elinora's tongue snapped back into her mouth as she clasped her hands in front of her.

"You'd best get your things together, Pup. We leave within the hour."

"Yes, Papa," she replied, before sprinting from his study, up to her room. Her clothes had already been packed for her, and now she had only to gather other items essential for any extended trip away from home: the book of adventure tales she kept stowed under her bed, the leather pouch of smooth, perfectly flat skipping stones, and her careworn, stuffed Mabari.

"You know," Fergus' voice came from behind her as she was stuffing the dog into her pack, and she turned to see her brother leaning in the doorway. "Father told me he was only bringing you along because he plans to leave you in the Korcari Wilds so the Witch of the Wilds can eat you for supper."

Elinora folded her arms. "He did _not_."

"He did," Fergus insisted, his eyes glinting wickedly.

"I'll bet he didn't. You're fibbing!"

"Flemeth the Witch _eats_ children, you know." Fergus pushed away from the wall and crept toward Elinora, his hands curled like claws, fingers wiggling menacingly. "And travelers who go through the Wilds must leave payment," he came even closer, lowering his voice maliciously, "in the form of _little sisters. _"

_ "Papa!" _

Fergus ran from her room, mad, delighted laughter trailing behind him, with Elinora in hot pursuit, her pack bouncing haphazardly against her back. The two raced down the corridors, bursting through doorways, and tearing across the carpets, competing cries of dismay and delight bouncing off the stone walls.

Until, that is, their mother's clear voice cut through the maddening din.

"Maker's breath! Fergus and Elinora Cousland! _What_ do you think you're doing?"

Four feet came to a sudden, skidding stop in front of the Teyrna.

"Do you honestly expect your father to take you both anywhere when you're behaving like barbarians?" she asked sharply, one brow arching dangerously upward.

"But Fergus said—!"

"Elinora." The tone in their mother's voice alone was enough to make the youngest Cousland fall silent, digging the toe of her shoe into the rug.

"Your father is waiting for you both in the courtyard," Eleanor Cousland continued, eyeing her two children coolly. "Though I am of half a mind to let him make the trip alone."

Brother and sister both held their breath.

"Can you assure me that you will be better behaved in Redcliffe than you have demonstrated so far this morning?" she continued, scrutinizing her children.

"Yes, ma'am," Fergus and Elinora mumbled in unison, looking anywhere but at their mother.

"Very well." Finally, a smile broke through their mother's chilly exterior. "Go on, then, and do please _try_ to remember that what you say and do reflect on both yourselves and the Cousland name."

Again, they answered together: "Yes, ma'am."

Their mother's smile warmed further as she sunk down to her knees, pulling them both into a hug. "I will miss you both. Be safe, and watch out for each other. Fergus, be sure to keep an eye on your sister."

\---

Bryce Cousland found the ride from Highever to Redcliffe blessedly uneventful, though peppered with a variety of questions from his youngest:

"Papa, will there be bandits on the way?"

"I doubt it, Pup."

"What about dragons?"

"Highly unlikely, Pup."

"Does the Witch of the Wild eat little girls?"

"...Just who is putting these ideas in your head, Elinora?"

\---

Though Fergus had made the trip with his father before, Elinora had never been to Redcliffe, and her eyes widened as the enormous red cliff that was its namesake came into view. It was nothing like Highever or even Denerim. It seemed dusty where Highever was lush, but as they drew nearer to Redcliffe Castle, Elinora saw that there were no shortage of hills and clusters of forest, which improved her opinion on the place.

As they came into the castle courtyard, Elinora spied a blond boy about Fergus' age sitting on the stairs. He leapt to his feet and hurried down the steps, greeting her brother warmly.

"I hadn't thought you were ever going to get here! I've been positively _dying_ of boredom all day!"

Fergus laughed. "I doubt that, Cailan."

"Come now, Uncle Eamon's just back from Orlais and he's brought with him some of the most amazing swords. He's even brought back a _real_ chevalier's mace! It's absolutely enormous – I can barely pick it up. You've got to see it!"

Fergus cast a hopeful look at their father, who nodded. In a flash, the two boys were scrambling off into the castle as fast as their eleven-year old legs could carry them.

Her father turned and crouched to meet Elinora's eyes. "Why don't you go with them?"

Elinora considered this. "I don't think Fergus would like that very much."

He thought for a moment, then shot her a conspiratorial smile. "I understand the Arl has a mated pair of Mabari that delivered a litter a few weeks ago. I'm sure the kennel master would be happy to let you see them, if you liked."

Elinora's eyes went wide and she nodded avidly. "Yes, please! Can we? Can we go now?"

Father only laughed and reached out to muss her hair. "We ought to say hello to Arl Eamon first, don't you agree? Anything less would be rude."

Arl Eamon was a tall man, as tall as her father, but with a great beard that Elinora found she didn't like very much. All the same, he greeted her warmly, and seemed entirely impressed by her curtsey, which Elinora found wholly gratifying. They were a tedious thing to practice, and yet both Nan and her mother _insisted_ she do so.

"I understand you've a litter of pups in the kennel, Eamon," her father said, sparing Elinora a sidelong glance.

"That I do," the Arl replied, eyes twinkling under his bushy eyebrows. "I don't suppose your daughter would be interested in paying them a visit, hmm?"

Her father laughed, resting a hand on her shoulder. "The topic may have come up."

"Very well. To the kennels, then?"

"I can find it myself," Elinora blurted out, eager to get underway. "I don't mind."

Arl Eamon appeared amused by her comment, shaking his head at her father. "She has Eleanor's independent spirit, I see. Refreshing."

"Mmm. Someday you'll have children of your own and you'll see just how 'refreshing' it can be, I'm sure."

"Isolde _is_ eager to start a family," chuckled Eamon, before turning his attention back on Elinora. "You'll want to head through that door," he said, pointing to his left. "And continue on until you can't go straight anymore. Then you're going to take your first left, and then your first right. The kennels will be right there." He gave her a thoughtful look. "Are you certain you'll be able to find it?"

But Elinora was already running down the hallway. "I'll find it!"

Her feet pounded dully against the rich carpets as she ran, repeating the Arl's directions to herself. "Straight, left, right," she whispered. "Straight, left, right." She could hear deep, excited barking, and she ran faster, going through the first door on her left, and then the next one on her right, bursting into the kennels. Large cages lined the walls and in all but one of those cages were huge, fully-grown Mabari wardogs.

In that other cage was a boy, roughly her age, with tousled blond hair.

They regarded each other warily for a moment, and Elinora took a few steps closer, tilting her head at the curious sight.

"Did you lock yourself in there?" she asked, puzzled.

"No. Do I _look_ that stupid to you?" the boy huffed.

"Well, you do look a bit silly," she confessed. "You're sitting in a dog pen, after all. How did you get in there, anyway?"

"It was an accident," he grumbled sullenly. "I don't really want to talk about it."

Elinora saw that, with the admission, the boy's face had turned pinkish red, the flush creeping up past his cheeks to the tips of his ears. She felt a bit bad for him, and decided that locking yourself in a cage was bad enough – he probably didn't need to be teased further. "What's your name?" she asked, changing the subject as she yanked hard on the cage door.

"Alistair," he said, watching her. "It's locked, you know."

So it was. Letting out an impatient sigh, Elinora scowled at the lock before giving it a pull. "Well, d'you know where the key is?"

The boy propped his chin in his hand. "Kennel master's got it," he said, glumly. "I was just waiting for him to come back." He paused, still wary of her, but also curious. "So, what's your name?"

"Everyone calls me Pup," was Elinora's matter-of-fact reply as she looked around the room for something that might unlock the cage.

"Pup? That's a silly name," Alistair remarked with a snort. "What are you supposed to be, half Mabari?"

"This coming from the boy who locked himself in a dog pen! And I never said it was my _name_," she added, defensively. "It's just what everyone calls me."

He gave an inquisitive tilt of his head. "...Why don't they call you by your name?"

Elinora pulled on the lid of a heavy wooden chest, until it opened with a creak. "Do you always ask so many questions?" she asked, rifling through the contents.

"Only on days when I've locked myself in a Mabari cage."

She straightened, peering at him over the open chest before turning back to her task again. "You're a very strange boy."

He sighed a little. "...People always say that."

"You _did_ lock yourself in the—"

"I told you, it was an accident."

There, at the bottom of the chest, beneath a pile of Mabari crunch, was a set of keys. Smiling triumphantly, she reached in and grabbed her prize. "Well, why'd you even want to go into a dog's pen to begin with? Thought you'd take a nap on the hay?" she asked, teasingly.

Something changed, then; Alistair's expression closed, suddenly: his jaw set, and another flush colored his cheeks deep red. "Get out of here. Leave me alone."

His reaction had been nothing like what Elinora had expected; she stilled and stared at him, eyes going wide in confusion. "What—"

"I _said_, get out and leave me alone!" All of the dogs looked up, cocking their heads at the sudden outburst. Alistair folded his arms firmly across his chest, twisting his body until his back was to Elinora.

She closed the chest, letting the lid catch with a soft click and walked quietly across the room, standing before the cage again. "Why are you mad at me?"

"Why are you _still here_?" he snapped, hotly.

His tone scalded her and Elinora took a reflexive step back. "...I'm sorry, I- I didn't mean to—"

"Go. _Away_."

She held up the keys. "But I have the—"

Alistair whipped around, trembling with anger; Elinora felt it coming off of him in waves, and she took a step back. "Leave me—" His eyes lit on the keys in her hand and the words stopped.

"I... f-found it." Her chin trembling, Elinora tried one key after another until one of them slid into the lock and turned with a loud _clank_. The lock fell dully to the floor and Elinora dropped the keys. Tears filled her eyes suddenly her and she turned, running blindly from the kennel. Somewhere behind her, the cage door opened and closed, and the rapid tattoo of footfalls followed her.

"Hey, wait! Wait!"

She kept running, taking a corner at random and hurtling herself down a set of stairs, stopping only when she found herself in a stark, dimly lit storeroom. Alistair's footsteps were still behind her, and she scrambled behind a crate and sat, pressing her back against the wall and drawing her legs up against her chest, making her body as small as possible. He hadn't been far behind, and she'd only narrowly hid herself before he crashed into the storeroom after her.

"Are you down here? ...Pup?"

Elinora held her breath, screwing her eyes shut tight, hoping against hope he'd just leave. Evidently she wasn't that lucky.

"Pup?"

A few seconds passed and she heard a soft scuffling across the stone floor. Slower footsteps. Elinora couldn't hold her breath any longer; she sucked in a quick gasp, still trying to remain hidden, and then the footsteps came and someone was kneeling in front of her.

"I'm sorry. I'm _really_ sorry."

"Leave me alone," she said, her head bowed. "You're out of your stupid cage. Go away. I just wanted to see the puppies, and _you_ were there instead."

There was a pause. "The kennel master took the pups to the stable with their mother so they could have a bit of room to play. He told me so. I... can take you there, if you want?" She didn't reply, didn't even acknowledge him, and he leaned forward a bit, trying to look her in the eye. "I'll take you there and leave you alone, straightaway. Promise."

She looked up at him from behind the fall of her bangs. "Why?"

Alistair shrugged a little. "I really didn't want to be in there anymore. And I ... wasn't very nice to you, and you let me out anyway. And I know I ought to say thank you." He took hold of her sleeve, then, and tugged lightly. "So come on. I'll take you to them."

Elinora considered the matter even as Alistair was pulling at the material. She stood, rubbing at her face with her free hand and saw the boy wince.

"I made you cry?"

"I'm not crying," she muttered, even as she wiped her sleeve across her eyes.

"I'm really, really, really, _really_ sorry." He fell quiet a moment, then tugged on her sleeve again. "Come on. There's a secret way outside."

"...Secret?"

"Well, he admitted, it's not a very _good_ secret, since so many people use it. But it's still quicker than going through the rest of the castle." With that, he led her through the storeroom, up a flight of stairs, and after struggling with the door for a moment, tugged her out into the brightly lit afternoon.

"Come on, it's this way."

Alistair let go of her sleeve, only to grab her hand instead, and began tugging her across the courtyard and along the castle grounds, until they reached the stables. Elinora could hear the excited yips of puppies coming from within.

"It's still too cold to let them play in the fresh air, but the kennel's a bit damp, he said," Alistair explained. He let go of Elinora's hand and linked both of his behind his back. "So... I'm really sorry I was so rude." Another series of playful barks and yips floated through the air and, for a moment, Alistair looked wistful, and then turned to make his way back to the castle, stopping short only when he realized that Elinora had a firm grasp on the cuff of his shirt.

"Why were you so mean just then?" she asked, frowning at him.

Alistair looked down at Elinora's hand holding his sleeve as if he couldn't understand how it got there. "I don't want to talk about it," he replied, shaking his arm lightly. But Elinora held fast.

Elinora stood up a bit straighter, pinning him with her gaze and speaking primly. "Well, I'm not letting go until you tell me."

"What?" Alistair's eyes widened and he yanked harder on his sleeve. "Leggo. If I tear this shirt, I'll be in trouble. Just go play with the dogs, all right?"

"Just tell me, and I'll let go," she said, reasonably.

"I don't _want_ to tell you!"

"Why not?"

"Because you'll probably laugh."

"I wouldn't!" Elinora cried.

Her grip on his cuff had loosened and with one more tug, Alistair found that he was free. "You would, I bet. Anyway. I don't want to talk about it, and you can't make me." He turned to leave. "Now go play with the dogs."

"Hey! You can't boss me around like that!"

Alistair's escape temporarily thrown off-course, he turned, eyeing her with great incredulity. "Don't you _want_ to play with the puppies?"

"Well... yes, but..."

"But what?"

"I think I'd rather play with you."

This admission took Alistair several moments to comprehend. "But I was mean to you," he reminded her, as if she might have forgotten.

Elinora shrugged. "But you apologized."

"Oh." He took a few seconds to digest this.

"My brother Fergus hardly ever apologizes after he's been mean," she went on to explain, "unless Father makes him do it."

"What do you usually do when he is?" Alistair asked.

Elinora gave him a gap-toothed grin. "Kick him in the shin." She grabbed his hand, then, and began pulling him toward the sounds of young Mabari, playing. "So come on already!"

It had become evident to Alistair that this was one of those girls you just didn't argue with. He relented with a small smile, following her into the stables.

"What do you want to do after this?" she asked.

"We could catch toads! There's a _whopping_ big mud puddle down by the mill."


End file.
